The former Utah Jazz Assistant Coach on the importance of on court chemistry for new players, Giannis unrest in Milwaukee (?), Why do good teams stop winning (?) + more
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:09):
He's out.
Speaker 2 (00:10):
Let's get the latest on the Utah Jazz with former
Jazz assistant coach Gordy Chiasa. He's forgotten more about the
NBA than any of us will ever know.
Speaker 1 (00:18):
Let's not get crazy.
Speaker 3 (00:19):
Come for the hoops talk.
Speaker 1 (00:21):
Stay for his list of the day My list today.
Speaker 2 (00:24):
Here's oc with basketball Saba Gordy Chiasa on The Sean
O'Connell Show.
Speaker 3 (00:32):
Welcome back to the Sean O'Connell Show.
Speaker 4 (00:34):
Welcome man, our friend, an NBA guru, Forty Chiaisa, longtime
coach in the association, all the great minds we get
to pick about basketball all the time.
Speaker 3 (00:45):
Gordy, Welcome back to the show. How are you showing?
Speaker 1 (00:47):
I'm doing fine, Thank you. I'm looking forward to it
to the NFL season and my beloved forty nine Ers
and my other team back east showing I'm a tortured
soul the New York Jech.
Speaker 4 (01:00):
Yes, you and I share an affection for the San
Francisco forty nine Ers, so we will stay positive on that.
I can't give you any positivity about the Jets.
Speaker 1 (01:10):
And yeah, a jetson. To be a Jet fan is
almost like torture. For the last fifty years now. We're
not talking like you know, twenty fourteen, we're talking fifty So.
Speaker 4 (01:21):
Yeah, in my lifetime, they've never been great. So yeah,
all right, you were arriving and hearing me talk about
that point I was making with Devin Dan Pierre were optimistic.
I mean, I'm over the moon about the potential, right.
And basketball is a different game, but there are plenty
(01:42):
of similarities where a quarterback and his receivers, a quarterback
and his offensive line is running backs. You got to
get on the same page with receivers, especially because so
much is associated with timing and with you know, both
of you getting the same read from the defense that
will determine which way the receiver breaks. If the throw
is going to be on time. The QB sometimes has
(02:04):
to have the ball out of his hand before the
break actually happens. That that same page thing can lead
to turnovers or not. It can change a touchdown to
a turnover and vice versa, and it requires time, it
requires reps. And I know that the same is true,
or I assume that the same is true in basketball,
(02:24):
And I thought you would probably have a decent example
or two of you know, even when the chemistry is
good where it just takes time and it just takes
you know, practice hours or practice reps or whatever to
get truly to where you need to be very much.
Speaker 1 (02:40):
The first thing is those reps are at game speed.
And the second thing is that when you're a smart
passer in other words, in the NFL be a quarterback
and college football a QB. But in basketball most times
it's a point guard traditionally or the guys on perimeter
that make place for each other. So add to that,
(03:00):
you ask the receiver during as the reeks go on,
where do you like the ball to be caught? Is
in the shooting pocket? Is your right hand, is your
left hand? Like just generally speaking, where do you feel
more comfortable when the ball is being placed to you?
Has to emphasize placed and that you get chemistry by
(03:20):
talking with each other as far as off the court,
but on the court you get it by playing the game.
See the problem right now in this generation where teams
dramatically less practice and so there's slippage during the season.
So a lot of times at the beginning of the year,
you're much more crisper as far as your offense, but
(03:43):
as the dog days of after the All Star break,
will say March first. Generally speaking, the better teams accelerate
as far as their execution and the lesser teams deteriorate.
And so a lot of it's based on what as
far as on top I'm on target passes turnovers that
(04:04):
are self inflicted, and so it has to be by
the players on perimeter that they keep talking to their receivers.
Emphasize again, receive a second football when when you cut
into your baseline cutter and basketball, you're a catch receiver,
and that your hands your hands above your waist all
the time, and that what you want to do is
be able to catch the ball in the same rhythm
(04:25):
with your footwork. So your footwork and your hands play
in harmony into what you're shooting stroke. So it's critical
you've got to play the game at a high speed.
Then add to the let's point about this is that
add to it, by the way, you're gonna You're gonna
get bumped on the catch. Getting hit in a sporting
event is perfectly normal. It's normal. So it's your lucky
(04:47):
day when someone your you catch the ball. I call
it in a tuxedo where where no no one's bothering you.
Most times, the better the defense, the more physicality, and
that's where you able to catch and be able to
use your hands and also to get free. So chemistry
starts in the locker room, off the court, but accelerated
(05:09):
on the court with quality speed reps.
Speaker 4 (05:13):
We talk all the time in football about that catching
with contact, catching a contested ball the alligator arms when
people go over the middle and they don't want to
reach out because you hear the footsteps coming. Is there
an equivalent to that in NBA basketball where a guy
is just bad when it comes to catching the contested pass.
Speaker 1 (05:31):
Oh very much, you answered, they're afraid to what Detroit.
Also they're concerned about getting hit, but also they're playing
too fast. The words, they're thinking about what they're doing
next before the bull's eating court. So were always talk
like in football, you want to see the ball through
your hands, see the ball through your hands, and then
(05:53):
make the correct read. And by the way, that read
is going to be at full speed. That the question
is how can I make the catch in speed, but
make a decision what in slow pause? See slow pause?
So I catch speed speed wise, but I decide in
a slow pause and generally speaking, you know, the expression,
(06:13):
like for a same quarterback definitely is that the game
slows down when you're more experienced as far as reps,
just like in basketball and you're a score, the game
slows down. So we also in the NBA Finals for
she Jos Alexander, the game slowed down for him. He's
able to have this unbelievable acrobatic game, but still what
(06:34):
plan the control? And Jalen Williams, the guy from Santa Clara,
is a fourth year player, the same way he did,
the game slowed down. So it's a process. It's always
painful just to make it fatal.
Speaker 4 (06:52):
I want to talk about the return of one of
the beloved Jazz men. George Nyang is back in this
Jazz uniform, and you know, there's we've been talking about
it the last couple of days.
Speaker 3 (07:04):
I guess, you know, the mini.
Speaker 4 (07:06):
Van, the the reputation of being a great teammate and
all that kind of stuff. Everyone stops short when you're
praising George Yang of saying, like he's actually also a
really good basketball player. Who is George Nyang as an
actual basketball player. Everybody loves him, but on the floor,
what is he.
Speaker 1 (07:25):
He's a knockdown shooter thirty nine point nine from threes.
When his feet are set in that corner, sean, you
feel really real good about what that shot in the air.
And so he's a knockdown shooter on a pick and roll,
pick and pop, he's able to make that open jump
shot defensively, even though he's a step slow, which is
(07:46):
perfectly normal for most guys in the NBA, but he
has he's an alertness and he wants through the right thing.
So he's a better team defender than the individually, both
on off ball. What he gives the jazz is a
guy that so he turns twenty nine October twenty eighth
of this year, he's a veteran that has a good personality,
(08:08):
is a knockdown shooter, and the players will listen to him. Economically, Sewing,
his contract is only one year and so it's eight
point two million, so it's gonna work out certainly, but
just safe in the narrative after one year, they just
can move him on as far as his contract or
(08:29):
in the trading deadline very much where a playoff type
team would want him, because there's a finished line on
his contract. So he's an absolutely valuable asset in the
in the short term, but also throughout this season because
people like him. How about George and ying now, don't
feel sorry for him, but he was showing. He was
(08:51):
trading three times since the trade deadline, three times already
and twice this summer, So Sewan the learning point about this,
by the way, do not buy a house. Do not
buy a house, do not buy a condo. Rent rent,
So Jiljio, I'm talking to you right now as a colleague,
I would rent right now because of your previous to
(09:11):
last year or so. Now again he makes the eight
point two million. You can't feel sorry. I get it. However,
remember these people are human beings. They are they have
families and that you know, it's traumatic uplifting your family
to move or be away from them for x amount
of time. So it's all part of being a professional player,
and the better players understand it and they grow in it.
Speaker 4 (09:35):
In general, do guys that are in this sort of
journeyman category do they like going back to a place
that they're familiar with or are they you know, more
looking forward to seeing, you know, a new market, living
in a Because George seemed to like Salt Lake City,
and he was embraced here and they're respected here and
(09:55):
things like that. I imagine when the call came like, hey,
we're trading you, you're going to the Jazz, seems like
he would have had a positive reaction. But you've been
around way more of these trains than I ever will be.
Speaker 5 (10:05):
You know.
Speaker 1 (10:06):
It's positive. Yeah, because he knows the area, he knows
some of his teammates that we're here, and more, he
knows the head coach, he knows management. So it's a
much fluid and memin now. Austin Anger was there in
Boston when he was there. So the guy that runs
the Jazz right now, Austin Inge was George Nang knows
him personally too, as far as being a form of
(10:28):
Celtic So mem now, so Georgi Yang went from Atlanta
to Cleveland, Cleveland to Boston, Boston now to the Jazz
in the last year or so. So it's good. I
like George Yang. He brings the Jazz a shooting threat
and just generally speaking, he plays to win.
Speaker 4 (10:46):
What kind of locker room presidence will he be expected
to have with this group of young guys. He's one
of the one of the veterans on this team, but
the more natural leadership role belongs to obvious starters, belongs
two elite level players, belongs to a lowry marketing Still
for George and Nyang, I imagine he can offer some helpful
(11:07):
advice to the young guys.
Speaker 1 (11:08):
Yeah, very much. I know young guys would be Kyle Philipowski.
So that's the guy that's in a probably mentor and
also with I would say even Ace Belly definitely. So
remember also Jesse have Kyle Anderson there too, So Kyle
Anderson is the same sort of role where Joji twenty
nine I had mentioned October twenty eighth, Kyle's thirty one.
(11:30):
So these are guys that they still can play. Remember now,
the players respect you and listen to you only if
you can still play. If you can't play, they don't
respect you. So that's why it's so important that when
from day one in practice is that you get after
the younger guys and say to them, hey, you might
be in the future, but by the way, I can
still play, but let me help you become a better
(11:52):
player early in your Korea by doing one, two three.
What I've learned eight years ago when I was a
rookie like you like a young so it's all it's important. Now,
a question in jazz basketball is who is the leader.
Larry Markin is an absolutely tremendous player, but he's a
quiet personality and that's okay, there's nothing wrong with that.
(12:12):
So the jazz the leader should be should be I'm
posing for a second, besides the guys he's traded for.
It should be Chiante George and Asaya call you, because
they're gonna have the bull in the game and so
they'll be both young people. Are they ready for that challenge?
(12:32):
Let's watch.
Speaker 3 (12:34):
We got Gordon Chaser here in studio with us.
Speaker 4 (12:36):
We'll take a quick one where we're talking about basketball
right now. But you're probably thinking about golf as the
weekend approaches. If you haven't checked out the Stansbury Park
golf course yet, now is the time to Willa County's
historic golf course. Great course great for a reason, uh
the combination of challenge pace and for a lot of
(12:59):
us this is very important price.
Speaker 3 (13:02):
It really meets the Goldilocks.
Speaker 4 (13:04):
Zone on all of those there's a water trap on
almost every hole.
Speaker 3 (13:08):
The greens very well kept.
Speaker 4 (13:11):
They replace the they mix it up with the whole placement.
The layout keeps you focused and you gotta be fired up.
It's the perfect course to go out there with your
friends because you're gonna have like seven awesome holes, and
in that seven holes that you have that are great,
you're gonna have in your foursome. You're gonna have three
guys that spray it into the water and you get
(13:33):
to talk a little bit of trash and then on
whole number eight, it's probably your turn to take the medicine.
It's the perfect course to golf with your buddies. There's
no long waits, there's no overpriced green fees.
Speaker 3 (13:44):
It's pure golf.
Speaker 4 (13:45):
Eighteen holes are forty five dollars during the week, fifty
dollars on weekends. Right off I eighty out in Tuila County.
Go check out Stansbury Park Golf Course Stansbury Park dot
gov slash golf course. Book your tea time right now
that Stansbury Park dot gov slash golf course.
Speaker 3 (14:07):
All right. Lots more to discuss with Gordia.
Speaker 4 (14:08):
Chiasa, including the uh the rumblings around the Greek freak
Jannis Ante Dinkupo. There still seems to be a lot
of folks wondering what his future looks like with Milwaukee.
Will touch on that next and much more on The
Sean O'Connell Show, ESPN seven hundred ninety two on fl.
Speaker 2 (14:30):
You tune to The Sean O'Connell Show for the Murdoch
Chevrolet Studio of ESPN seven hundred and ninety two to
one a half m.
Speaker 4 (14:47):
Shan o'conmo show continues with Gordi Chisa here in studio.
Speaker 1 (14:52):
Show. I remember showing you and A were together the
day that Prince passed away, and I remember you and
I were talking about Prince, and yeah, we had a
very deep discussion about Prince the day he passed away.
Speaker 3 (15:07):
How long has he ben gone?
Speaker 1 (15:08):
Now? I want to say, Sean, I'm guessing, all right, ten,
ten years, nine years, I'm guessing nine.
Speaker 4 (15:15):
You are absolutely correct, Okay, I was just twenty first,
twenty sixteen is when Prince passed away.
Speaker 1 (15:21):
Well, we that day we were together.
Speaker 4 (15:24):
Ordy's got to mind like a steel trap for all
of you who probably have figured that out. Even obscure
facts like when how long Prince has been gone?
Speaker 1 (15:32):
Well, in nineteen ninety I was written Sewan in nineteen
eighty two. In case you're wondering, I remember, I remember
I was at basketball camp with these crazy guys. I
leave it at that, you know, I leave it at
that crazy guys at basketball camp in eighty two, and
this song came on to quote the juke box. What's
a juke box? Like? What? Like, Gordy what, Gordy what?
(15:52):
What are you talking about?
Speaker 3 (15:54):
I love going to a place that has an old
fashioned jukebox.
Speaker 1 (15:57):
So I remember these guys, these crazy guys, putting in
the quarters and playing the song. So that's just my
I think.
Speaker 4 (16:03):
Now it costs like two dollars and fifty cents to
request a song on a jukebox. You got to do
a credit card probably, but yeah, the old school ones
are awesome.
Speaker 1 (16:11):
This is the quarter.
Speaker 4 (16:13):
By the way, if you're not watching on YouTube ESPN
seven hundred Sports, Utah, you're really missing out on the
fashion of Gorda Chiaza.
Speaker 3 (16:23):
Today. He's got an old school, like.
Speaker 4 (16:26):
A very simple but awesome old jazz shirt. It's it's
an embroidered jazz logo in the up on the kind
of the left breast pocket no pocket though, in a
copper thread. It's just awesome and Gordy, you told us
that that's been in your closet for like twenty five years.
Speaker 1 (16:48):
Yeah, twenty five years. Yeah, I found it twenty five years.
I have a lot of emphasized junk in my closet.
And remember showing you know about junk one person chunk
someone else's treasure. In case you're went, just saying, Sean.
Speaker 3 (17:01):
Well, if you ever wanted to, you could.
Speaker 4 (17:03):
You could probably sell off a lot of your vintage
jazz gear for a pretty penny, because, uh, that's what
the that's what the young hipsters are into these days.
Speaker 5 (17:09):
They love the vintage stuff. You know, we all do
no answer you take it off your hands, Gordy, if
you if you.
Speaker 3 (17:17):
They're not allowed to steal Gordy's shirt.
Speaker 1 (17:20):
Really, I didn't realize that I'm such a great of
fashion statement people laughing.
Speaker 3 (17:25):
It's a style icon, Gordon.
Speaker 4 (17:26):
I didn't realize that we were talking during the break
about what I talked about. Going into the break, you
got us I did goootball shamps shamps. Randy keeps saying like,
hey guys, we don't know what the future is going
to be, and and your thought on that was, well,
share your thought on the uncertainty around the Greek Freaks future.
Speaker 1 (17:47):
Just play my thing about just play, don't worry about
anything else. That you're an elite talent that's fell short
in the playoffs, even though back in twenty twenty one
you were world champions. However, in professional sports is a
short memory. What have you done for us recently? And
recently now is four years already, and so if I
(18:08):
was counseling him thoroughly, I would just say just play,
and that his contract is right in place. He makes
this year fifty four point one million, twenty six, twenty
seven fifty eight point four million, twenty seven, twenty eight
fifty two point seven million. So what is the problem
here that they franchise the books. They've invested in you
(18:31):
as a a once in a lifetime generational talent, which
you are. But help your team get past the first round,
which has been knocked out by the patients of ron glue.
Showing back to back seasons. They have a good roster.
It's somewhat aging, but they feel that their future is
the present tense right now, and so they're all in
(18:51):
as far as trying to events. But so they've got
to Giannis's got he's right now, he's in the European Championships.
Are you call your basket he's over in Greece right now.
And sometimes when you're native country, you let it all
hang down your hair.
Speaker 4 (19:08):
Are you if you're on a coaching staff, are you
concerned about like those like a euro basket stint for
someone like Giannis?
Speaker 1 (19:14):
Oh yeah, very much, Yeah, yes you are. Is that
besides talking to the European media, is that you always hesitant.
You have to have to play, play for the national team.
You have to so you can't stop that minus minus
the guy who's injured beforehand. So but you always are
very hesitant about it because you're you're the your franchise.
(19:38):
Is is the main focal point for that player, even
though he loves his native country. So again, in jazz basket,
we used to have Carolinko who obviously he loved the
Mother of Russia and he played for their team all
the time. And so and then Larry markin and present
tent plays with Finland and the European they called the EuroBaskets.
He's playing in Finland as far as against other European teams,
(19:59):
so it's a big thing. There's twenty four teams that
are in Europe right now that are playing for the championship.
It takes about three and a half weeks and then
they're the champion of Europe.
Speaker 4 (20:09):
My favorite thing is when a player, a European player,
gets called away to do the mandatory military service that
exists for young men in a lot of those countries. Yes,
and you hear about some professional athlete making forty million
dollars a year and he's got to go do his
national guard duty or whatever.
Speaker 3 (20:25):
I love that. I loved those stories.
Speaker 1 (20:26):
Well, that was Larry Markin two years ago with Finland.
He had he was he served in the military. And
then the Israeli players it's mandatory, both men and women
serving their in Israel military service for two years. Usually speaking,
it's when you're generally speaking, most times it's twenty years old.
Most times. Okay, there you go.
Speaker 4 (20:51):
Johnson, the former Johnson in the same thing, James whispering.
I don't know if you put that on.
Speaker 3 (20:56):
Air or not.
Speaker 5 (20:57):
No, no, so I was. I don't know if he's
done his military service yet. Sorry, I was just you
were talking about the Finish national team. Larry Markinin I
thought we should shout out former running you Mickey Johnson,
and is on that Finnish national team as well.
Speaker 1 (21:11):
Sure, and that's it's all part of it. So that's
their country. America is their second country, and so that
when they're they're with there some of their teammates growing
up as far as in European Under fourteen Championships, you're
under seventeen, you're under twenty championships. Now these guys are
in the NBA or other professional sports, they unite in
(21:33):
their country to represent them, showing the most intense game
ever that I've heard about, including you know, Jazz Bulls
nineteen ninety eight and Flag Day was when Lithuania for
the first time played against Russia when Russia when Lithuani
with a Baltic was part of Russia in nineteen the
early nineteen nineties, they played Russia for the bronze medal
(21:58):
in the Olympics and it was an overtime game and
literally the whole Lithuanian population literally watched that game because
they had so much pride. When Lithuania beat Russia for
the bronze medal game in the nineteen ninety two Championships,
he was an overtime matter of fact, so it's absolutely incredible.
(22:20):
People tell me it was the most intense game they've
ever seen ever in a game.
Speaker 4 (22:28):
It's hard to contextualize European fandom when I don't know,
when you haven't been to a live event in Europe
or whatever. The sports fans there. I don't know if
it's because of the pregaming, I don't know what it is,
but sports fans in Europe we I'm a very patriotic person,
(22:49):
but they do it better in a lot of cases.
They're just so rabid about even some obscure sports. It's
pretty awesome going to sporting events in Europe.
Speaker 1 (22:57):
And that's why it's so point the Olympics that last year,
how those sports the other quote, the other sports that
really aren't in the Americans like lexicon as far as
you know these different sports, but in Europe it's absolutely
huge other parts of the world, and that's why it's
so important to respect These people are world class athletes,
and we're going to see you in twenty twenty eight
(23:20):
in la which will becoming out party of a lot
of a lot of different people. I can't wait for.
I know it's a long time off. As far as
the ebbs and flow of sports. But Sean, speaking of
the ebbs and flows, I want to discuss and get
your opinion about some of these things as far as
why good teams stop winning? Yeah, why good teams stop winning?
Speaker 3 (23:41):
I wanted to.
Speaker 4 (23:42):
Say that for this upcoming segment because Gordy came in
and he said, listen, let's have this discussion on the
show today. And we've got twenty eight minutes left with Gordy,
so we're gonna flesh this out. Why do good teams
stop winning? Yes, we'll focus on the NBA side of it,
but of course you can extrapolate it to we don't know,
maybe even you tell football these last couple of seasons.
(24:04):
We'll get into it on the Sean O'Connell show. It's
ESPN seven hundred ninety to one FM, proud part of
Utahs ESPN Radio Network.
Speaker 6 (24:12):
You were listening to the Sean O'Connell show for the
Murder hundred studio of ESPN seven.
Speaker 4 (24:29):
Welcome to our number two on the Sean O'Connell Show.
We got Gordon Chaza for another twenty five ish minutes
here and he came into the studio with something on
his mind today why do good teams stop winning? The
layers to this onion can go deeper and deeper, but
let's start with where you want to start, Gordy, why
(24:51):
do good teams in the NBA stop winning?
Speaker 1 (24:55):
Watching all college drafts? So the first thing is that
usually back to back years the draft was marginal, and
so that's the first thing. So you didn't get young
guys into your organization that were able to win. The
second thing is that you didn't retain the younger free agents.
(25:16):
So you have some free agents that are on your team,
they're twenty something years old, say twenty four to twenty five,
you didn't retain some of them. Erratic player development where
you draft these young guys. They're underskilled even though they're
ultra athletic, but their skill level is what subpar and
(25:37):
it was it's very slow, erratic on it. You signed
free agents, So the acquisition of free agents are bad fit.
They were bad fit. Next one, the older veterans lose
their work ethic. So the guy again and say basketball,
(25:57):
the players roughly around give a take thirty three years old,
and he loses his work ethic where he's stolen the
team under contract but not the same let's bust it
out in practice. Let me work on my skills, let
me work on the physical part of it, and the
mental and nutritional eating correctly. There's a slipage on it.
Speaker 4 (26:20):
How often is that related to a contract? We talk
about it in football all the time, and there's plenty
of examples where a guy gets paid and that becomes
a demotivating factor rather than the thing that pushes them
to the next level, which of course is what the
team hopes for. When you give someone this sixty million
(26:41):
seventon one hundred million dollar contract and then he just
shows up to the next training camp out of shape,
et cetera. The numbers in the NBA are more inflated
than anywhere else. How often is that lack of commitment
that you're talking about related to a contract?
Speaker 1 (27:00):
And yeah, off, The answer is absolutely off. And it's
case by a case a lot. It's based on your
personality and your individual pride that when you're really a
person with character, when someone gives us something, you want
to pay them back more so by performing even more better,
even more diligent about it, versus the other direction, where's
(27:23):
a lack of character where I get paid now and
now I can slack off. And it happens in every sport,
especially in basketball, that your point is well taken. The
numbers are so inflated. Again, I took it like sixty
million dollars contracts, like it's like it's like it's every day,
which it is, as a matter of fact, is every day.
(27:44):
So when I say that, I cringe. My voice is cringing.
So you described there a guy that's twenty eight, twenty
nine years old. He retired on his teammates without telling
them that he's still retired. What an awful feeling that
your teammates are playing to win and you're still you're
playing to watch skate a lawn. Next part about that
(28:05):
is management and head coaches. There's internal feuding over the roster.
So the head coach and management is feuding internally, not publicly,
but internally where the management wants to have this guy
on the team or without saying it, I think you
(28:25):
should play this guy more minutes, and the head coach
doesn't agree with that. So there's feuding. So you know
expression in Layman's term. Oh, by the way, they're not
on the same page. That's what happens next one the
team Why they're losing is that they did lack of
bench strength where they management didn't give enough players as
(28:50):
far as winning bench players or the coaches play at
the unit as a bench. We so that in the
NBA right now, two months ago with Tom Thibodeaux, the
five starters played literally almost the whole game, and there
was a lack of bench for Knickerbockers. So they fell
slightly short.
Speaker 4 (29:09):
Much to the chagrin of Utah fans, because Delon Wright
was on that bench, and we a lot of us
thought that he could have helped that team.
Speaker 1 (29:15):
Add to that, and so Delon Right when Gellen Brunson
was hurt with the spran ekle, he played wonderful for
the hit. He had an eight game stretch where he
played twenty minutes a game. He was really good. And
so Delon Wright, to Shawn's point, is that he's a
freegent right now. If I'm a good team in the NBA,
I want Delon Right on my group as a second
(29:36):
unit defensive playmaker off the bench, causing having make enough
open jump shots on it just too quickly. The last
point about this is the number eight would be court
tilt on the roster there's too many extreme offensive minded
players with way too many few two way players both
(29:57):
offense and defense. And so that's what why good teams
fall apart. It could be only five of these reasons.
It could be too top heavy, it could be why
many many reasons, but generally speaking, these are the reasons
why most times when teams are good and they don't win,
we call it court tilt. The court is tilted on
(30:18):
one direction where it's too much offense or too much defense.
We saw the Thunder this past year, their number one
team in defense in the NBA, and by the way,
what they're in the top five offensively. That's why, that's
why they're champions, and that's why the Pacers also. So
think about the Pacers. They overachieved this and the opposite
the Pacers have is that most of those guys on
(30:40):
the Pacer team, they're direct opposite because the pieces fit,
They play as a unit. They have tremendous bench strength
right now, player development program, they retain the younger free agents,
et cetera. You Philip blankson how about the NFL.
Speaker 4 (30:56):
Well, in the NFL, the points that you were making
as a listening to that, you know, point after point
after point. It's they're all roster points. It is all
and every coach tells you it's not x's and o's,
it's Jimmy's and Joe's. But good teams don't stop winning
because everyone else figures out their scheme. Good teams don't
(31:19):
stop winning because suddenly the rest of the league catches
up to them on the x's and o's. It's a
roster construction thing. How often can you see it coming, Gordon,
Because you've been around the game for a long time,
and when you see some of these moves and you'll
be like, oh, well that actually that falls into point
number X whatever like that, that's a guy who's too
(31:41):
offensively focused. They've already got too many offensively focused guys.
Now that's going to be a court tilt problem for
this team because I imagine you see it coming before
the rest of us.
Speaker 1 (31:50):
Doo I do. And that's why it's so important to
try to have a balance roster. That again, your main
guys have to be two way players, especially in the playoffs,
minimum in the fourth quarter. So the philosophically is that
our our three best players on our team better than
(32:14):
the other three best players on the opposing as rivals
in a playoff game, especially in the fourth quarter in
games of five, six, and seven, and usually speaking, when
your team has those three better players that play as
a playoff both sides of the ball, the rest of
the other players on the court, they're going to overachieve.
(32:35):
And as just described again the Thunder I described, the Pacers,
I described described all the teams, the Denver Nuggets, who
are the Nuggets. They overachieved this year. They have court showing.
The Nuggets have court tilt. But Jokis is so brilliant
as far the way he plays is that he's able
to focus on the court where it's not as dramatic,
(33:01):
even though it should be. So think about the think
about the the Denver Nuggets. They have no bench, no bench,
uh yet yet they took shown, they took the Thunder
World champions the seven games.
Speaker 3 (33:15):
And they had already fired their head coach.
Speaker 1 (33:17):
That's correct, right, So just think of and so this
is why there's always one outlier.
Speaker 3 (33:22):
So okay, I'm just thinking.
Speaker 4 (33:24):
Okay, so the Denver My next question to you is
going to be based on what we just talked about.
What's a good team that's gonna stop winning? And you okay,
that's a team with court tilt problems. That's a team
with the front office slash coaching, you know, Discord, that's
they they check at least a couple of those boxes.
Are the Nuggets a team, a good team that's gonna
(33:47):
stop winning?
Speaker 1 (33:49):
The answer is they did last year, but this year
they corrected it. So to their credit right now, So then,
so the what they did, they edit the They edited
ut Tim Hartway, junior offensive minded off the bench. They
added Bruce Brown, a two way player off the bench,
so they got They added Cam Johnson, an open shooter
(34:09):
and replaced it instead of Michael Porter, who's one dimensional.
And then they added Valachunis, who's who is a Lithuanian bully.
And so what they did the Nuggets, to their credit,
they absolutely improved their bench. And so it gave it
gives now the devn Nuggets a fighting chance to go
(34:30):
deeper in the playoffs, because again it's awful feeling. You
don't want to waste somebody that's a once in a
lifetime player, nar Nikolai Jokic with a roster that's gonna
fall short. So the Nuggets, to their credit management group,
they did a wonderful job with their team.
Speaker 4 (34:47):
So's when we talk about teams, you know on the rise,
you think of what Orlando looks like right now, you
think of San Antonio. The Jazz want to be in
that category sooner than later, although it's probably gonna take
a little bit of time for any team on the
rise to break through. It means that a decent team,
at least or a good team has to stop winning,
(35:10):
has to fall. If you're gonna leap frog somebody, it
means you've got to be better, but they probably also
have to be worse. So of last year's NBA playoff
teams or the teams that you considered to be a
good team, who is most at risk for stopping on
the positive momentum, who's gonna stop winning?
Speaker 1 (35:27):
Gordy, then the Bucks and the Knicks and the Celts
caause of injuries. Okay, those three right there in the East.
In the West, it would be the Grizzlies, the Suns,
(35:54):
and the Kings. Yeah, so we'll see, we'll see you.
Speaker 4 (36:00):
But you could see like okay, so okay, see Houston, La, Denver,
other LA, even the Timberwolves. They're gonna be able to
sustain this for a little while.
Speaker 1 (36:10):
Yes they are. Yeah, the answer is yes, yes they
are because they have a They have good players that
are in their prime, and most of those teams have
a have a point guard that can steady the ship
during the game. And as I always talk about this,
even though now this generation is this there's no more
(36:31):
quote old school point guards minus Chris Paul type guys.
But you have to have a point guard and a
game in a fourth quarter that steadies the steadies the
group right now, and that they're very conscious. See sean
point guard isn't a position, it's a mentality. It's a
(36:53):
mentality where my floormate is struggling during a game. I'm
the point guard of our group, where the starter or
the backup point guard. How can I help this guy
get some shots to get himself going because he's ultra talented,
he's having mental amnesia right now, he's he's he has
an element of doubt, even though he's fearless as a player,
(37:16):
but it's a doubt right now the defense is overwhelming him.
How can I get in Ball mentioned earlier about receiving
on time, on target, So every good team I mentioned
that that's going to be champions has a has a
point guard or a guard on perimeter that that is
wants to get his teammates involved. So it's it's that's
(37:42):
why people say, well, in the NBA, it's position list
until what in the playoff game in the fourth quarter.
See again, people say things just you just say it
out loud. Okay, that's true. Yeah, that's true. No it's not.
That's not true. In the fourth quarter, I can assure it.
And sometimes the point guard is a big guy, so
to them, very it's Jokic. Sure, it's joke, it's Lebron.
(38:04):
A lot of times it's a So it's it does
it's not always a smaller guy. But you have to
have somebody that is willing to get someone else a
shot because they know that this is dynamics, this is chemistry.
Speaker 4 (38:20):
How much control does a coaching staff have in today's
NBA on things like that, because you do have to
contend sometimes or hopefully you're working in conjunction with your
front office with the more seasoned leadership on your team.
Some of those guys now have decision making power almost
(38:41):
at the team and roster level, right like Lebron James
runs every organization he's a part of it would seem
so for a coaching staff, how much control do you
have over what we're just talking about with you know,
the uh, the team chemistry, the willingness of a particular
player to accept the role, especially an important role, when
(39:06):
maybe that's not what they envision themselves as as a player.
The power imbalance that happens in college sports is starting
to even out. It's always been less significant in professional basketball.
I would make the argument that in the NBA the
power imbalance favors the players, the superstar players in a
lot of cases where it makes it incredibly challenging for coaches.
(39:30):
But again, you have been in these rooms during these discussions.
You have played this role sometimes with players who have massive,
massive egos. So what level of control does the coaching
staff have.
Speaker 1 (39:46):
A whole bunch with the winning teams the lesser teams,
it's dramatically lower. And that's why the teams win. And
so what you want to do is that to win
in the NBA, to win in the n FELT, you
have to have let the star players be stars because
they have an elite talent. But within that, you've got
(40:07):
to get the star players to play as a unit.
So in basketball, we always talk about we want to
showcase your unbelievable individual skills. But let's do this after
watch ball moving first. Let's do it for screening action.
Let's get your ball. Let's get the ball to you
in space on time, on the second side of the
floor versus what the top of the circle where the
(40:28):
defense can stare right now at you and it's gonna
limit you. And then most times Giannis type people will
take an all balanced jump shot because the defense now
to help defense is locked in and when the shots missed,
a lot of times they blame your teammates to get
into my way. And so the way we teach the
guys is trust us that we'll get the ball to
you in time, on target, usually on the second side
(40:51):
of the floor after ball movement. So is that the
better coaches in the NBA, they they have discipline. Discipline
is everything, And I don't mean crazy discipline. I mean
where you use bad words every single minute of practice.
I'm not saying that. I'm just saying is that that
there's an element of high element of trust and that
(41:11):
the discipline that we're playing as a unit, usually speaking
sewan when the ball moves, the scoreboard moves. When the
ball sticks, the scoreboard sticks. It sounds so simple, elementary,
but doesn't get cloudy during your game. And that's why
it's so important to play as a unit. Now. Management
(41:31):
often has a nesia where they don't think like that,
and so they wanted to only have the best talent
on the court. And so a lot of times you
ever have you've been in a situation shown where a
team is ultra talented but they underperformed, usually speaking, that's
when they have is a court tilt and that the
star players are one dimensional and they don't share the
(41:52):
ball with their teammates and that's why they aren't as
successful based on their talent.
Speaker 4 (42:00):
I mean, we've seen this at every level of sport.
We've seen this as we get ready for college football season,
where teams will they'll just accumulate an insane amount of
talent and now you have to pay for it, so
they'll throw a bunch of money at that, but for
whatever reason, it doesn't translate into wins, and then coaches
get blamed for it, and a lot of it. I mean,
(42:21):
I guess it is on the coaches to make sure
team chemistry ends up working out.
Speaker 3 (42:25):
But gosh, easier said than done very much.
Speaker 1 (42:28):
So generally speaking, every sport is that the attention to detail.
So sean football, the better teams that go to deepen
the playoffs, they have very few pre snap penalties. Sure,
that's why they win. You're able to execute under pressure.
I'm simplifying it. In basketball, by the way, that's a foul.
So to put a team into the penalty left in
(42:49):
a quarter at the nine minute and five second mark
of a quarter, a team shooting at penalty because we
had five bizarre fouls that happened in practice probably a
thousand times, and that's when you have to correct it
either very very quickly, either very softly or unfortunately sometimes
loudly because the players they're not listening. I call that
(43:13):
invisible ear muffs that they're yes, heing you to death,
but they're not listening. And that's when you have to
And that's why again, the better teams they win because
they don't beat themselves.
Speaker 4 (43:25):
And I gotta ask you this before we get to
your list. Crazy story that uh it's gonna end up
going to trial, I guess. But a Miami Heat security
guard stole like three four hundred game worn jerseys out
(43:46):
of out of the locker room, sold them to online
brokers for a total of two million dollars over a
three year period, and he got Caddy got busted. By
the way, he's a retired police officer, which is just
he was a twenty five year retired veteran of the
Miami Police Department who ended up working for Miami Heat
(44:08):
Security and actually NBA security for a short time. He
sold one hundred of the things that he stole. They
think that he could have sold up to about four
hundred different things.
Speaker 3 (44:20):
Uh oh, yeah, they he.
Speaker 4 (44:23):
Sold one hundred items he had already. They seized another
three hundred stolen game warn jerseys and other valuable memorabilia
from his residence back in April. Were you Did you
ever encounter this in your years in the NBA where somebody,
you know, stuff started disappearing from the locker room.
Speaker 1 (44:43):
Yes, I have, Yes, I've seen it. Yes, I've seen it. Yes.
And the reason why is that usually at the equipment manager,
there's only like three or four people have that magical
key I call it the equipment room. And unfortunately that
just pressing me on the Heat had that one of
the had security had that key, and it's not one thing,
(45:04):
it's a lot of things. Remember Sewan, the players sometimes
get like fifty pairs of sneakers delivered by Adidas or
by Nike, a new balance times. You know, all these players,
and it goes into a into a secure room that
only had only people have a we'll say again, three
or four people have access to that room. Who's to
(45:26):
say that those people hopefully they're ethical, and you hope
they are, but this person was not. So it does happen, unfortunately,
and then it's so suddenly, it's so suddenly online or
in some auction house, and that's when it gets crazy.
Speaker 3 (45:40):
Yeah.
Speaker 4 (45:40):
This guy, by the way, not a great business man,
all right, because while unethical to say the least, he
also the best example in the article here, he sold
a game warn Lebron Jersey NBA Finals Jersey. He sold
it for about one hundred grand and that thing I
ended up selling for three point seven million dollars. So
(46:03):
he's not only is he a thief, he's kind of
a bad businessman. He's not even getting near the value
of these things. At least if you're gonna steal from
Lebron an NBA Finals game Warn Jersey.
Speaker 3 (46:16):
Don't unload it at a discount.
Speaker 4 (46:18):
Don't be fencing that thing to some rando for you know,
a fraction of what it's worth.
Speaker 1 (46:23):
I'm saddened by it because, again, it's in the NBA.
This is just so few people in the locker room.
It's only there's only fifteen players and the coaches and
the trainers being athletic trainers and some of the other personnel.
So truly a small group. And that's why it's so
disturbing that this person able to do that. But speaking
(46:44):
of disturbing, shown this is our last list of this
NBA season and it has a Utah jazz flavor and
has a flavor also shown leaning towards you. Yes, Gordia,
Joan O'Connell, Gordy.
Speaker 4 (46:59):
Knows what what kind of not NBA what kind of
basketball player I was in my very undecorated basketball career.
Speaker 1 (47:06):
Well, you told me this over the last year or so.
Is this list today is a top ten NBA leaders
in most technical fouls accumulated, most technical fouls accumulated. The
common traits are being physical, emotional, you're skilled, your competitive
(47:28):
all right, and you have longevity because it's based on
a Korea. Here we go. Number ten most technical fouls.
Kevin gone In played twenty one years in the NBA.
Hit one hundred and seventy two technical fouls. That's a
guy and he's in Hall of Fame. Number nine. Dwight
Howard played in the NBA for eighteen years. Hall of Famer,
(47:49):
one seventy eight technical fouls. Anthony Mason played in the
NBA for thirteen years, one hundred and ninety two technical fouls.
Speaker 3 (47:57):
It's a lot in thirteen years.
Speaker 1 (47:59):
Number seven. He's playing right now. He's a free agent.
You either either love him or dislike him. Russell Westbrook
has played in the NBA for seventeen years. Future Hall
of Famer has one hundred and ninety eight technical fouls.
Number six. He was born and raised in Germany. He
played for twenty one years for the Dallas Mavericks. He's
(48:19):
in the Hall of Fame. Dirk Nowitzki accumulated one hundred
and ninety nine technical fouls. Number five. Nickname was the
Worm played. He's played in the NBA for fourteen season
in the Hall of Fame. Dennis Shrobin accumulated two hundred
and twelve technical fouls. Number four nickname was the Glove.
Played in the NBA for seventeen season. Hall of Famer
(48:43):
Technical fouls A messed two hundred and fifty Number three.
This person is even interesting, even more so than a
lot of people. Rashard Rashid Wallas played in the NBA
for sixteen years, including an NBA record of the most
technical fouls ever in a single season in the two
(49:05):
thousand two thousand and one NBA season with Portland, where
he committed forty one technical fouls. It's the most ever
in the NBA. With the forty one added to it,
he accumulated three hundred and seventeen technical fouls, third all time.
Speaker 4 (49:23):
Is he the reason why they started to institute suspensions
and fines for an accumulation of technical.
Speaker 3 (49:29):
Fouls that is correct?
Speaker 4 (49:30):
The answer is yes, you change the rules of your
league by too many technical fouls.
Speaker 3 (49:37):
I love that.
Speaker 1 (49:38):
Number two all time, Charles Barkley played in the NBA
for sixteen season. Hall of Famer, had three hundred and
twenty nine technical fouls and number one. I coached this
guy for sixteen years. I saw most of these technical fouls.
Remember the criteria physical, emotional, skilled, competitive longevity, cal Malone
(50:01):
played for nineteen years. Hall of Famer call accumulated three
hundred and thirty two technical fouls after this, Jerry Sloan,
the Jazz Trusted Leader, my colleague, has the NBA record
for most ever also technical fouls as a head coach.
So I've been involved with both people as a player
(50:23):
and head coach technical fouls. Lastly, the last point about this,
Let's go the other side, showing the flip side of it,
the other extreme. Mike Conley has never been assessed a
game technical foul in his eighteen year old Korea through
the twenty four to twenty five seasons.
Speaker 3 (50:41):
Zero zero.
Speaker 1 (50:42):
That's one thousand, one seventy two games total minutes played,
thirty six thousand and five ninety seven. As Michael Conley
has never had a technical foul. That's the opposite of
the spectrum.
Speaker 3 (50:56):
Okay, what we need James? All right, you're the BA
around here.
Speaker 4 (51:00):
Not during the show, but as soon as the show
is over, when you put your boss hat back on.
We need to get Karl Malone and Mike Conley doing
some kind of podcast. It like a good guy bad
guy kind of thing. Good cop bad cop. You're talking
about a guy with none and the all time leader,
(51:20):
both of them who have played in a jazz uniform.
Speaker 3 (51:23):
That's unbelievable.
Speaker 4 (51:25):
That's playing that long without getting a single one is
far more rare and impressive than being the guy who
obviously had the most.
Speaker 1 (51:34):
And Mike cones he's a good player.
Speaker 4 (51:36):
Yeah, he's not a good It's not like you're some
dude who's been on the bench and you haven't been
on the floor and you haven't been elbowed and you
haven't been like the fact that he has never been
reactive in his NBA career to the point of being
assessed a technical foul. He must meditate a lot or something.
That is Banana's to me, because I'm sure we could
(51:58):
find situations where Mike Conley got fouled hard or guys
were talking trash man. That is insane Mike Conley, the
next time we talked to him, the discussion is going
to be all about that.
Speaker 3 (52:13):
Thank you for that factoid, Gordy so sew on.
Speaker 1 (52:15):
This list was a flavor Utah jazz, but it was
geared all towards towards someone like yourself of your physicality, emotionalism, skill, competitiveness,
and longevity.
Speaker 3 (52:29):
Three of those things. I don't have two of them.
Speaker 1 (52:31):
I do.
Speaker 4 (52:32):
No longevity in the basketball world for sure. Gordy, you're
the man.
Speaker 1 (52:38):
Thanks showing peace out
He's out.
Speaker 2 (00:10):
Let's get the latest on the Utah Jazz with former
Jazz assistant coach Gordy Chiasa. He's forgotten more about the
NBA than any of us will ever know.
Speaker 1 (00:18):
Let's not get crazy.
Speaker 3 (00:19):
Come for the hoops talk.
Speaker 1 (00:21):
Stay for his list of the day My list today.
Speaker 2 (00:24):
Here's oc with basketball Saba Gordy Chiasa on The Sean
O'Connell Show.
Speaker 3 (00:32):
Welcome back to the Sean O'Connell Show.
Speaker 4 (00:34):
Welcome man, our friend, an NBA guru, Forty Chiaisa, longtime
coach in the association, all the great minds we get
to pick about basketball all the time.
Speaker 3 (00:45):
Gordy, Welcome back to the show. How are you showing?
Speaker 1 (00:47):
I'm doing fine, Thank you. I'm looking forward to it
to the NFL season and my beloved forty nine Ers
and my other team back east showing I'm a tortured
soul the New York Jech.
Speaker 4 (01:00):
Yes, you and I share an affection for the San
Francisco forty nine Ers, so we will stay positive on that.
I can't give you any positivity about the Jets.
Speaker 1 (01:10):
And yeah, a jetson. To be a Jet fan is
almost like torture. For the last fifty years now. We're
not talking like you know, twenty fourteen, we're talking fifty So.
Speaker 4 (01:21):
Yeah, in my lifetime, they've never been great. So yeah,
all right, you were arriving and hearing me talk about
that point I was making with Devin Dan Pierre were optimistic.
I mean, I'm over the moon about the potential, right.
And basketball is a different game, but there are plenty
(01:42):
of similarities where a quarterback and his receivers, a quarterback
and his offensive line is running backs. You got to
get on the same page with receivers, especially because so
much is associated with timing and with you know, both
of you getting the same read from the defense that
will determine which way the receiver breaks. If the throw
is going to be on time. The QB sometimes has
(02:04):
to have the ball out of his hand before the
break actually happens. That that same page thing can lead
to turnovers or not. It can change a touchdown to
a turnover and vice versa, and it requires time, it
requires reps. And I know that the same is true,
or I assume that the same is true in basketball,
(02:24):
And I thought you would probably have a decent example
or two of you know, even when the chemistry is
good where it just takes time and it just takes
you know, practice hours or practice reps or whatever to
get truly to where you need to be very much.
Speaker 1 (02:40):
The first thing is those reps are at game speed.
And the second thing is that when you're a smart
passer in other words, in the NFL be a quarterback
and college football a QB. But in basketball most times
it's a point guard traditionally or the guys on perimeter
that make place for each other. So add to that,
(03:00):
you ask the receiver during as the reeks go on,
where do you like the ball to be caught? Is
in the shooting pocket? Is your right hand, is your
left hand? Like just generally speaking, where do you feel
more comfortable when the ball is being placed to you?
Has to emphasize placed and that you get chemistry by
(03:20):
talking with each other as far as off the court,
but on the court you get it by playing the game.
See the problem right now in this generation where teams
dramatically less practice and so there's slippage during the season.
So a lot of times at the beginning of the year,
you're much more crisper as far as your offense, but
(03:43):
as the dog days of after the All Star break,
will say March first. Generally speaking, the better teams accelerate
as far as their execution and the lesser teams deteriorate.
And so a lot of it's based on what as
far as on top I'm on target passes turnovers that
(04:04):
are self inflicted, and so it has to be by
the players on perimeter that they keep talking to their receivers.
Emphasize again, receive a second football when when you cut
into your baseline cutter and basketball, you're a catch receiver,
and that your hands your hands above your waist all
the time, and that what you want to do is
be able to catch the ball in the same rhythm
(04:25):
with your footwork. So your footwork and your hands play
in harmony into what you're shooting stroke. So it's critical
you've got to play the game at a high speed.
Then add to the let's point about this is that
add to it, by the way, you're gonna You're gonna
get bumped on the catch. Getting hit in a sporting
event is perfectly normal. It's normal. So it's your lucky
(04:47):
day when someone your you catch the ball. I call
it in a tuxedo where where no no one's bothering you.
Most times, the better the defense, the more physicality, and
that's where you able to catch and be able to
use your hands and also to get free. So chemistry
starts in the locker room, off the court, but accelerated
(05:09):
on the court with quality speed reps.
Speaker 4 (05:13):
We talk all the time in football about that catching
with contact, catching a contested ball the alligator arms when
people go over the middle and they don't want to
reach out because you hear the footsteps coming. Is there
an equivalent to that in NBA basketball where a guy
is just bad when it comes to catching the contested pass.
Speaker 1 (05:31):
Oh very much, you answered, they're afraid to what Detroit.
Also they're concerned about getting hit, but also they're playing
too fast. The words, they're thinking about what they're doing
next before the bull's eating court. So were always talk
like in football, you want to see the ball through
your hands, see the ball through your hands, and then
(05:53):
make the correct read. And by the way, that read
is going to be at full speed. That the question
is how can I make the catch in speed, but
make a decision what in slow pause? See slow pause?
So I catch speed speed wise, but I decide in
a slow pause and generally speaking, you know, the expression,
(06:13):
like for a same quarterback definitely is that the game
slows down when you're more experienced as far as reps,
just like in basketball and you're a score, the game
slows down. So we also in the NBA Finals for
she Jos Alexander, the game slowed down for him. He's
able to have this unbelievable acrobatic game, but still what
(06:34):
plan the control? And Jalen Williams, the guy from Santa Clara,
is a fourth year player, the same way he did,
the game slowed down. So it's a process. It's always
painful just to make it fatal.
Speaker 4 (06:52):
I want to talk about the return of one of
the beloved Jazz men. George Nyang is back in this
Jazz uniform, and you know, there's we've been talking about
it the last couple of days.
Speaker 3 (07:04):
I guess, you know, the mini.
Speaker 4 (07:06):
Van, the the reputation of being a great teammate and
all that kind of stuff. Everyone stops short when you're
praising George Yang of saying, like he's actually also a
really good basketball player. Who is George Nyang as an
actual basketball player. Everybody loves him, but on the floor,
what is he.
Speaker 1 (07:25):
He's a knockdown shooter thirty nine point nine from threes.
When his feet are set in that corner, sean, you
feel really real good about what that shot in the air.
And so he's a knockdown shooter on a pick and roll,
pick and pop, he's able to make that open jump
shot defensively, even though he's a step slow, which is
(07:46):
perfectly normal for most guys in the NBA, but he
has he's an alertness and he wants through the right thing.
So he's a better team defender than the individually, both
on off ball. What he gives the jazz is a
guy that so he turns twenty nine October twenty eighth
of this year, he's a veteran that has a good personality,
(08:08):
is a knockdown shooter, and the players will listen to him. Economically, Sewing,
his contract is only one year and so it's eight
point two million, so it's gonna work out certainly, but
just safe in the narrative after one year, they just
can move him on as far as his contract or
(08:29):
in the trading deadline very much where a playoff type
team would want him, because there's a finished line on
his contract. So he's an absolutely valuable asset in the
in the short term, but also throughout this season because
people like him. How about George and ying now, don't
feel sorry for him, but he was showing. He was
(08:51):
trading three times since the trade deadline, three times already
and twice this summer, So Sewan the learning point about this,
by the way, do not buy a house. Do not
buy a house, do not buy a condo. Rent rent,
So Jiljio, I'm talking to you right now as a colleague,
I would rent right now because of your previous to
(09:11):
last year or so. Now again he makes the eight
point two million. You can't feel sorry. I get it. However,
remember these people are human beings. They are they have
families and that you know, it's traumatic uplifting your family
to move or be away from them for x amount
of time. So it's all part of being a professional player,
and the better players understand it and they grow in it.
Speaker 4 (09:35):
In general, do guys that are in this sort of
journeyman category do they like going back to a place
that they're familiar with or are they you know, more
looking forward to seeing, you know, a new market, living
in a Because George seemed to like Salt Lake City,
and he was embraced here and they're respected here and
(09:55):
things like that. I imagine when the call came like, hey,
we're trading you, you're going to the Jazz, seems like
he would have had a positive reaction. But you've been
around way more of these trains than I ever will be.
Speaker 5 (10:05):
You know.
Speaker 1 (10:06):
It's positive. Yeah, because he knows the area, he knows
some of his teammates that we're here, and more, he
knows the head coach, he knows management. So it's a
much fluid and memin now. Austin Anger was there in
Boston when he was there. So the guy that runs
the Jazz right now, Austin Inge was George Nang knows
him personally too, as far as being a form of
(10:28):
Celtic So mem now, so Georgi Yang went from Atlanta
to Cleveland, Cleveland to Boston, Boston now to the Jazz
in the last year or so. So it's good. I
like George Yang. He brings the Jazz a shooting threat
and just generally speaking, he plays to win.
Speaker 4 (10:46):
What kind of locker room presidence will he be expected
to have with this group of young guys. He's one
of the one of the veterans on this team, but
the more natural leadership role belongs to obvious starters, belongs
two elite level players, belongs to a lowry marketing Still
for George and Nyang, I imagine he can offer some helpful
(11:07):
advice to the young guys.
Speaker 1 (11:08):
Yeah, very much. I know young guys would be Kyle Philipowski.
So that's the guy that's in a probably mentor and
also with I would say even Ace Belly definitely. So
remember also Jesse have Kyle Anderson there too, So Kyle
Anderson is the same sort of role where Joji twenty
nine I had mentioned October twenty eighth, Kyle's thirty one.
(11:30):
So these are guys that they still can play. Remember now,
the players respect you and listen to you only if
you can still play. If you can't play, they don't
respect you. So that's why it's so important that when
from day one in practice is that you get after
the younger guys and say to them, hey, you might
be in the future, but by the way, I can
still play, but let me help you become a better
(11:52):
player early in your Korea by doing one, two three.
What I've learned eight years ago when I was a
rookie like you like a young so it's all it's important. Now,
a question in jazz basketball is who is the leader.
Larry Markin is an absolutely tremendous player, but he's a
quiet personality and that's okay, there's nothing wrong with that.
(12:12):
So the jazz the leader should be should be I'm
posing for a second, besides the guys he's traded for.
It should be Chiante George and Asaya call you, because
they're gonna have the bull in the game and so
they'll be both young people. Are they ready for that challenge?
(12:32):
Let's watch.
Speaker 3 (12:34):
We got Gordon Chaser here in studio with us.
Speaker 4 (12:36):
We'll take a quick one where we're talking about basketball
right now. But you're probably thinking about golf as the
weekend approaches. If you haven't checked out the Stansbury Park
golf course yet, now is the time to Willa County's
historic golf course. Great course great for a reason, uh
the combination of challenge pace and for a lot of
(12:59):
us this is very important price.
Speaker 3 (13:02):
It really meets the Goldilocks.
Speaker 4 (13:04):
Zone on all of those there's a water trap on
almost every hole.
Speaker 3 (13:08):
The greens very well kept.
Speaker 4 (13:11):
They replace the they mix it up with the whole placement.
The layout keeps you focused and you gotta be fired up.
It's the perfect course to go out there with your
friends because you're gonna have like seven awesome holes, and
in that seven holes that you have that are great,
you're gonna have in your foursome. You're gonna have three
guys that spray it into the water and you get
(13:33):
to talk a little bit of trash and then on
whole number eight, it's probably your turn to take the medicine.
It's the perfect course to golf with your buddies. There's
no long waits, there's no overpriced green fees.
Speaker 3 (13:44):
It's pure golf.
Speaker 4 (13:45):
Eighteen holes are forty five dollars during the week, fifty
dollars on weekends. Right off I eighty out in Tuila County.
Go check out Stansbury Park Golf Course Stansbury Park dot
gov slash golf course. Book your tea time right now
that Stansbury Park dot gov slash golf course.
Speaker 3 (14:07):
All right. Lots more to discuss with Gordia.
Speaker 4 (14:08):
Chiasa, including the uh the rumblings around the Greek freak
Jannis Ante Dinkupo. There still seems to be a lot
of folks wondering what his future looks like with Milwaukee.
Will touch on that next and much more on The
Sean O'Connell Show, ESPN seven hundred ninety two on fl.
Speaker 2 (14:30):
You tune to The Sean O'Connell Show for the Murdoch
Chevrolet Studio of ESPN seven hundred and ninety two to
one a half m.
Speaker 4 (14:47):
Shan o'conmo show continues with Gordi Chisa here in studio.
Speaker 1 (14:52):
Show. I remember showing you and A were together the
day that Prince passed away, and I remember you and
I were talking about Prince, and yeah, we had a
very deep discussion about Prince the day he passed away.
Speaker 3 (15:07):
How long has he ben gone?
Speaker 1 (15:08):
Now? I want to say, Sean, I'm guessing, all right, ten,
ten years, nine years, I'm guessing nine.
Speaker 4 (15:15):
You are absolutely correct, Okay, I was just twenty first,
twenty sixteen is when Prince passed away.
Speaker 1 (15:21):
Well, we that day we were together.
Speaker 4 (15:24):
Ordy's got to mind like a steel trap for all
of you who probably have figured that out. Even obscure
facts like when how long Prince has been gone?
Speaker 1 (15:32):
Well, in nineteen ninety I was written Sewan in nineteen
eighty two. In case you're wondering, I remember, I remember
I was at basketball camp with these crazy guys. I
leave it at that, you know, I leave it at
that crazy guys at basketball camp in eighty two, and
this song came on to quote the juke box. What's
a juke box? Like? What? Like, Gordy what, Gordy what?
(15:52):
What are you talking about?
Speaker 3 (15:54):
I love going to a place that has an old
fashioned jukebox.
Speaker 1 (15:57):
So I remember these guys, these crazy guys, putting in
the quarters and playing the song. So that's just my
I think.
Speaker 4 (16:03):
Now it costs like two dollars and fifty cents to
request a song on a jukebox. You got to do
a credit card probably, but yeah, the old school ones
are awesome.
Speaker 1 (16:11):
This is the quarter.
Speaker 4 (16:13):
By the way, if you're not watching on YouTube ESPN
seven hundred Sports, Utah, you're really missing out on the
fashion of Gorda Chiaza.
Speaker 3 (16:23):
Today. He's got an old school, like.
Speaker 4 (16:26):
A very simple but awesome old jazz shirt. It's it's
an embroidered jazz logo in the up on the kind
of the left breast pocket no pocket though, in a
copper thread. It's just awesome and Gordy, you told us
that that's been in your closet for like twenty five years.
Speaker 1 (16:48):
Yeah, twenty five years. Yeah, I found it twenty five years.
I have a lot of emphasized junk in my closet.
And remember showing you know about junk one person chunk
someone else's treasure. In case you're went, just saying, Sean.
Speaker 3 (17:01):
Well, if you ever wanted to, you could.
Speaker 4 (17:03):
You could probably sell off a lot of your vintage
jazz gear for a pretty penny, because, uh, that's what
the that's what the young hipsters are into these days.
Speaker 5 (17:09):
They love the vintage stuff. You know, we all do
no answer you take it off your hands, Gordy, if
you if you.
Speaker 3 (17:17):
They're not allowed to steal Gordy's shirt.
Speaker 1 (17:20):
Really, I didn't realize that I'm such a great of
fashion statement people laughing.
Speaker 3 (17:25):
It's a style icon, Gordon.
Speaker 4 (17:26):
I didn't realize that we were talking during the break
about what I talked about. Going into the break, you
got us I did goootball shamps shamps. Randy keeps saying like,
hey guys, we don't know what the future is going
to be, and and your thought on that was, well,
share your thought on the uncertainty around the Greek Freaks future.
Speaker 1 (17:47):
Just play my thing about just play, don't worry about
anything else. That you're an elite talent that's fell short
in the playoffs, even though back in twenty twenty one
you were world champions. However, in professional sports is a
short memory. What have you done for us recently? And
recently now is four years already, and so if I
(18:08):
was counseling him thoroughly, I would just say just play,
and that his contract is right in place. He makes
this year fifty four point one million, twenty six, twenty
seven fifty eight point four million, twenty seven, twenty eight
fifty two point seven million. So what is the problem
here that they franchise the books. They've invested in you
(18:31):
as a a once in a lifetime generational talent, which
you are. But help your team get past the first round,
which has been knocked out by the patients of ron glue.
Showing back to back seasons. They have a good roster.
It's somewhat aging, but they feel that their future is
the present tense right now, and so they're all in
(18:51):
as far as trying to events. But so they've got
to Giannis's got he's right now, he's in the European Championships.
Are you call your basket he's over in Greece right now.
And sometimes when you're native country, you let it all
hang down your hair.
Speaker 4 (19:08):
Are you if you're on a coaching staff, are you
concerned about like those like a euro basket stint for
someone like Giannis?
Speaker 1 (19:14):
Oh yeah, very much, Yeah, yes you are. Is that
besides talking to the European media, is that you always hesitant.
You have to have to play, play for the national team.
You have to so you can't stop that minus minus
the guy who's injured beforehand. So but you always are
very hesitant about it because you're you're the your franchise.
(19:38):
Is is the main focal point for that player, even
though he loves his native country. So again, in jazz basket,
we used to have Carolinko who obviously he loved the
Mother of Russia and he played for their team all
the time. And so and then Larry markin and present
tent plays with Finland and the European they called the EuroBaskets.
He's playing in Finland as far as against other European teams,
(19:59):
so it's a big thing. There's twenty four teams that
are in Europe right now that are playing for the championship.
It takes about three and a half weeks and then
they're the champion of Europe.
Speaker 4 (20:09):
My favorite thing is when a player, a European player,
gets called away to do the mandatory military service that
exists for young men in a lot of those countries. Yes,
and you hear about some professional athlete making forty million
dollars a year and he's got to go do his
national guard duty or whatever.
Speaker 3 (20:25):
I love that. I loved those stories.
Speaker 1 (20:26):
Well, that was Larry Markin two years ago with Finland.
He had he was he served in the military. And
then the Israeli players it's mandatory, both men and women
serving their in Israel military service for two years. Usually speaking,
it's when you're generally speaking, most times it's twenty years old.
Most times. Okay, there you go.
Speaker 4 (20:51):
Johnson, the former Johnson in the same thing, James whispering.
I don't know if you put that on.
Speaker 3 (20:56):
Air or not.
Speaker 5 (20:57):
No, no, so I was. I don't know if he's
done his military service yet. Sorry, I was just you
were talking about the Finish national team. Larry Markinin I
thought we should shout out former running you Mickey Johnson,
and is on that Finnish national team as well.
Speaker 1 (21:11):
Sure, and that's it's all part of it. So that's
their country. America is their second country, and so that
when they're they're with there some of their teammates growing
up as far as in European Under fourteen Championships, you're
under seventeen, you're under twenty championships. Now these guys are
in the NBA or other professional sports, they unite in
(21:33):
their country to represent them, showing the most intense game
ever that I've heard about, including you know, Jazz Bulls
nineteen ninety eight and Flag Day was when Lithuania for
the first time played against Russia when Russia when Lithuani
with a Baltic was part of Russia in nineteen the
early nineteen nineties, they played Russia for the bronze medal
(21:58):
in the Olympics and it was an overtime game and
literally the whole Lithuanian population literally watched that game because
they had so much pride. When Lithuania beat Russia for
the bronze medal game in the nineteen ninety two Championships,
he was an overtime matter of fact, so it's absolutely incredible.
(22:20):
People tell me it was the most intense game they've
ever seen ever in a game.
Speaker 4 (22:28):
It's hard to contextualize European fandom when I don't know,
when you haven't been to a live event in Europe
or whatever. The sports fans there. I don't know if
it's because of the pregaming, I don't know what it is,
but sports fans in Europe we I'm a very patriotic person,
(22:49):
but they do it better in a lot of cases.
They're just so rabid about even some obscure sports. It's
pretty awesome going to sporting events in Europe.
Speaker 1 (22:57):
And that's why it's so point the Olympics that last year,
how those sports the other quote, the other sports that
really aren't in the Americans like lexicon as far as
you know these different sports, but in Europe it's absolutely
huge other parts of the world, and that's why it's
so important to respect These people are world class athletes,
and we're going to see you in twenty twenty eight
(23:20):
in la which will becoming out party of a lot
of a lot of different people. I can't wait for.
I know it's a long time off. As far as
the ebbs and flow of sports. But Sean, speaking of
the ebbs and flows, I want to discuss and get
your opinion about some of these things as far as
why good teams stop winning? Yeah, why good teams stop winning?
Speaker 3 (23:41):
I wanted to.
Speaker 4 (23:42):
Say that for this upcoming segment because Gordy came in
and he said, listen, let's have this discussion on the
show today. And we've got twenty eight minutes left with Gordy,
so we're gonna flesh this out. Why do good teams
stop winning? Yes, we'll focus on the NBA side of it,
but of course you can extrapolate it to we don't know,
maybe even you tell football these last couple of seasons.
(24:04):
We'll get into it on the Sean O'Connell show. It's
ESPN seven hundred ninety to one FM, proud part of
Utahs ESPN Radio Network.
Speaker 6 (24:12):
You were listening to the Sean O'Connell show for the
Murder hundred studio of ESPN seven.
Speaker 4 (24:29):
Welcome to our number two on the Sean O'Connell Show.
We got Gordon Chaza for another twenty five ish minutes
here and he came into the studio with something on
his mind today why do good teams stop winning? The
layers to this onion can go deeper and deeper, but
let's start with where you want to start, Gordy, why
(24:51):
do good teams in the NBA stop winning?
Speaker 1 (24:55):
Watching all college drafts? So the first thing is that
usually back to back years the draft was marginal, and
so that's the first thing. So you didn't get young
guys into your organization that were able to win. The
second thing is that you didn't retain the younger free agents.
(25:16):
So you have some free agents that are on your team,
they're twenty something years old, say twenty four to twenty five,
you didn't retain some of them. Erratic player development where
you draft these young guys. They're underskilled even though they're
ultra athletic, but their skill level is what subpar and
(25:37):
it was it's very slow, erratic on it. You signed
free agents, So the acquisition of free agents are bad fit.
They were bad fit. Next one, the older veterans lose
their work ethic. So the guy again and say basketball,
(25:57):
the players roughly around give a take thirty three years old,
and he loses his work ethic where he's stolen the
team under contract but not the same let's bust it
out in practice. Let me work on my skills, let
me work on the physical part of it, and the
mental and nutritional eating correctly. There's a slipage on it.
Speaker 4 (26:20):
How often is that related to a contract? We talk
about it in football all the time, and there's plenty
of examples where a guy gets paid and that becomes
a demotivating factor rather than the thing that pushes them
to the next level, which of course is what the
team hopes for. When you give someone this sixty million
(26:41):
seventon one hundred million dollar contract and then he just
shows up to the next training camp out of shape,
et cetera. The numbers in the NBA are more inflated
than anywhere else. How often is that lack of commitment
that you're talking about related to a contract?
Speaker 1 (27:00):
And yeah, off, The answer is absolutely off. And it's
case by a case a lot. It's based on your
personality and your individual pride that when you're really a
person with character, when someone gives us something, you want
to pay them back more so by performing even more better,
even more diligent about it, versus the other direction, where's
(27:23):
a lack of character where I get paid now and
now I can slack off. And it happens in every sport,
especially in basketball, that your point is well taken. The
numbers are so inflated. Again, I took it like sixty
million dollars contracts, like it's like it's like it's every day,
which it is, as a matter of fact, is every day.
(27:44):
So when I say that, I cringe. My voice is cringing.
So you described there a guy that's twenty eight, twenty
nine years old. He retired on his teammates without telling
them that he's still retired. What an awful feeling that
your teammates are playing to win and you're still you're
playing to watch skate a lawn. Next part about that
(28:05):
is management and head coaches. There's internal feuding over the roster.
So the head coach and management is feuding internally, not publicly,
but internally where the management wants to have this guy
on the team or without saying it, I think you
(28:25):
should play this guy more minutes, and the head coach
doesn't agree with that. So there's feuding. So you know
expression in Layman's term. Oh, by the way, they're not
on the same page. That's what happens next one the
team Why they're losing is that they did lack of
bench strength where they management didn't give enough players as
(28:50):
far as winning bench players or the coaches play at
the unit as a bench. We so that in the
NBA right now, two months ago with Tom Thibodeaux, the
five starters played literally almost the whole game, and there
was a lack of bench for Knickerbockers. So they fell
slightly short.
Speaker 4 (29:09):
Much to the chagrin of Utah fans, because Delon Wright
was on that bench, and we a lot of us
thought that he could have helped that team.
Speaker 1 (29:15):
Add to that, and so Delon Right when Gellen Brunson
was hurt with the spran ekle, he played wonderful for
the hit. He had an eight game stretch where he
played twenty minutes a game. He was really good. And
so Delon Wright, to Shawn's point, is that he's a
freegent right now. If I'm a good team in the NBA,
I want Delon Right on my group as a second
(29:36):
unit defensive playmaker off the bench, causing having make enough
open jump shots on it just too quickly. The last
point about this is the number eight would be court
tilt on the roster there's too many extreme offensive minded
players with way too many few two way players both
(29:57):
offense and defense. And so that's what why good teams
fall apart. It could be only five of these reasons.
It could be too top heavy, it could be why
many many reasons, but generally speaking, these are the reasons
why most times when teams are good and they don't win,
we call it court tilt. The court is tilted on
(30:18):
one direction where it's too much offense or too much defense.
We saw the Thunder this past year, their number one
team in defense in the NBA, and by the way,
what they're in the top five offensively. That's why, that's
why they're champions, and that's why the Pacers also. So
think about the Pacers. They overachieved this and the opposite
the Pacers have is that most of those guys on
(30:40):
the Pacer team, they're direct opposite because the pieces fit,
They play as a unit. They have tremendous bench strength
right now, player development program, they retain the younger free agents,
et cetera. You Philip blankson how about the NFL.
Speaker 4 (30:56):
Well, in the NFL, the points that you were making
as a listening to that, you know, point after point
after point. It's they're all roster points. It is all
and every coach tells you it's not x's and o's,
it's Jimmy's and Joe's. But good teams don't stop winning
because everyone else figures out their scheme. Good teams don't
(31:19):
stop winning because suddenly the rest of the league catches
up to them on the x's and o's. It's a
roster construction thing. How often can you see it coming, Gordon,
Because you've been around the game for a long time,
and when you see some of these moves and you'll
be like, oh, well that actually that falls into point
number X whatever like that, that's a guy who's too
(31:41):
offensively focused. They've already got too many offensively focused guys.
Now that's going to be a court tilt problem for
this team because I imagine you see it coming before
the rest of us.
Speaker 1 (31:50):
Doo I do. And that's why it's so important to
try to have a balance roster. That again, your main
guys have to be two way players, especially in the playoffs,
minimum in the fourth quarter. So the philosophically is that
our our three best players on our team better than
(32:14):
the other three best players on the opposing as rivals
in a playoff game, especially in the fourth quarter in
games of five, six, and seven, and usually speaking, when
your team has those three better players that play as
a playoff both sides of the ball, the rest of
the other players on the court, they're going to overachieve.
(32:35):
And as just described again the Thunder I described, the Pacers,
I described described all the teams, the Denver Nuggets, who
are the Nuggets. They overachieved this year. They have court showing.
The Nuggets have court tilt. But Jokis is so brilliant
as far the way he plays is that he's able
to focus on the court where it's not as dramatic,
(33:01):
even though it should be. So think about the think
about the the Denver Nuggets. They have no bench, no bench,
uh yet yet they took shown, they took the Thunder
World champions the seven games.
Speaker 3 (33:15):
And they had already fired their head coach.
Speaker 1 (33:17):
That's correct, right, So just think of and so this
is why there's always one outlier.
Speaker 3 (33:22):
So okay, I'm just thinking.
Speaker 4 (33:24):
Okay, so the Denver My next question to you is
going to be based on what we just talked about.
What's a good team that's gonna stop winning? And you okay,
that's a team with court tilt problems. That's a team
with the front office slash coaching, you know, Discord, that's
they they check at least a couple of those boxes.
Are the Nuggets a team, a good team that's gonna
(33:47):
stop winning?
Speaker 1 (33:49):
The answer is they did last year, but this year
they corrected it. So to their credit right now, So then,
so the what they did, they edit the They edited
ut Tim Hartway, junior offensive minded off the bench. They
added Bruce Brown, a two way player off the bench,
so they got They added Cam Johnson, an open shooter
(34:09):
and replaced it instead of Michael Porter, who's one dimensional.
And then they added Valachunis, who's who is a Lithuanian bully.
And so what they did the Nuggets, to their credit,
they absolutely improved their bench. And so it gave it
gives now the devn Nuggets a fighting chance to go
(34:30):
deeper in the playoffs, because again it's awful feeling. You
don't want to waste somebody that's a once in a
lifetime player, nar Nikolai Jokic with a roster that's gonna
fall short. So the Nuggets, to their credit management group,
they did a wonderful job with their team.
Speaker 4 (34:47):
So's when we talk about teams, you know on the rise,
you think of what Orlando looks like right now, you
think of San Antonio. The Jazz want to be in
that category sooner than later, although it's probably gonna take
a little bit of time for any team on the
rise to break through. It means that a decent team,
at least or a good team has to stop winning,
(35:10):
has to fall. If you're gonna leap frog somebody, it
means you've got to be better, but they probably also
have to be worse. So of last year's NBA playoff
teams or the teams that you considered to be a
good team, who is most at risk for stopping on
the positive momentum, who's gonna stop winning?
Speaker 1 (35:27):
Gordy, then the Bucks and the Knicks and the Celts
caause of injuries. Okay, those three right there in the East.
In the West, it would be the Grizzlies, the Suns,
(35:54):
and the Kings. Yeah, so we'll see, we'll see you.
Speaker 4 (36:00):
But you could see like okay, so okay, see Houston, La, Denver,
other LA, even the Timberwolves. They're gonna be able to
sustain this for a little while.
Speaker 1 (36:10):
Yes they are. Yeah, the answer is yes, yes they
are because they have a They have good players that
are in their prime, and most of those teams have
a have a point guard that can steady the ship
during the game. And as I always talk about this,
even though now this generation is this there's no more
(36:31):
quote old school point guards minus Chris Paul type guys.
But you have to have a point guard and a
game in a fourth quarter that steadies the steadies the
group right now, and that they're very conscious. See sean
point guard isn't a position, it's a mentality. It's a
(36:53):
mentality where my floormate is struggling during a game. I'm
the point guard of our group, where the starter or
the backup point guard. How can I help this guy
get some shots to get himself going because he's ultra talented,
he's having mental amnesia right now, he's he's he has
an element of doubt, even though he's fearless as a player,
(37:16):
but it's a doubt right now the defense is overwhelming him.
How can I get in Ball mentioned earlier about receiving
on time, on target, So every good team I mentioned
that that's going to be champions has a has a
point guard or a guard on perimeter that that is
wants to get his teammates involved. So it's it's that's
(37:42):
why people say, well, in the NBA, it's position list
until what in the playoff game in the fourth quarter.
See again, people say things just you just say it
out loud. Okay, that's true. Yeah, that's true. No it's not.
That's not true. In the fourth quarter, I can assure it.
And sometimes the point guard is a big guy, so
to them, very it's Jokic. Sure, it's joke, it's Lebron.
(38:04):
A lot of times it's a So it's it does
it's not always a smaller guy. But you have to
have somebody that is willing to get someone else a
shot because they know that this is dynamics, this is chemistry.
Speaker 4 (38:20):
How much control does a coaching staff have in today's
NBA on things like that, because you do have to
contend sometimes or hopefully you're working in conjunction with your
front office with the more seasoned leadership on your team.
Some of those guys now have decision making power almost
(38:41):
at the team and roster level, right like Lebron James
runs every organization he's a part of it would seem
so for a coaching staff, how much control do you
have over what we're just talking about with you know,
the uh, the team chemistry, the willingness of a particular
player to accept the role, especially an important role, when
(39:06):
maybe that's not what they envision themselves as as a player.
The power imbalance that happens in college sports is starting
to even out. It's always been less significant in professional basketball.
I would make the argument that in the NBA the
power imbalance favors the players, the superstar players in a
lot of cases where it makes it incredibly challenging for coaches.
(39:30):
But again, you have been in these rooms during these discussions.
You have played this role sometimes with players who have massive,
massive egos. So what level of control does the coaching
staff have.
Speaker 1 (39:46):
A whole bunch with the winning teams the lesser teams,
it's dramatically lower. And that's why the teams win. And
so what you want to do is that to win
in the NBA, to win in the n FELT, you
have to have let the star players be stars because
they have an elite talent. But within that, you've got
(40:07):
to get the star players to play as a unit.
So in basketball, we always talk about we want to
showcase your unbelievable individual skills. But let's do this after
watch ball moving first. Let's do it for screening action.
Let's get your ball. Let's get the ball to you
in space on time, on the second side of the
floor versus what the top of the circle where the
(40:28):
defense can stare right now at you and it's gonna
limit you. And then most times Giannis type people will
take an all balanced jump shot because the defense now
to help defense is locked in and when the shots missed,
a lot of times they blame your teammates to get
into my way. And so the way we teach the
guys is trust us that we'll get the ball to
you in time, on target, usually on the second side
(40:51):
of the floor after ball movement. So is that the
better coaches in the NBA, they they have discipline. Discipline
is everything, And I don't mean crazy discipline. I mean
where you use bad words every single minute of practice.
I'm not saying that. I'm just saying is that that
there's an element of high element of trust and that
(41:11):
the discipline that we're playing as a unit, usually speaking
sewan when the ball moves, the scoreboard moves. When the
ball sticks, the scoreboard sticks. It sounds so simple, elementary,
but doesn't get cloudy during your game. And that's why
it's so important to play as a unit. Now. Management
(41:31):
often has a nesia where they don't think like that,
and so they wanted to only have the best talent
on the court. And so a lot of times you
ever have you've been in a situation shown where a
team is ultra talented but they underperformed, usually speaking, that's
when they have is a court tilt and that the
star players are one dimensional and they don't share the
(41:52):
ball with their teammates and that's why they aren't as
successful based on their talent.
Speaker 4 (42:00):
I mean, we've seen this at every level of sport.
We've seen this as we get ready for college football season,
where teams will they'll just accumulate an insane amount of
talent and now you have to pay for it, so
they'll throw a bunch of money at that, but for
whatever reason, it doesn't translate into wins, and then coaches
get blamed for it, and a lot of it. I mean,
(42:21):
I guess it is on the coaches to make sure
team chemistry ends up working out.
Speaker 3 (42:25):
But gosh, easier said than done very much.
Speaker 1 (42:28):
So generally speaking, every sport is that the attention to detail.
So sean football, the better teams that go to deepen
the playoffs, they have very few pre snap penalties. Sure,
that's why they win. You're able to execute under pressure.
I'm simplifying it. In basketball, by the way, that's a foul.
So to put a team into the penalty left in
(42:49):
a quarter at the nine minute and five second mark
of a quarter, a team shooting at penalty because we
had five bizarre fouls that happened in practice probably a
thousand times, and that's when you have to correct it
either very very quickly, either very softly or unfortunately sometimes
loudly because the players they're not listening. I call that
(43:13):
invisible ear muffs that they're yes, heing you to death,
but they're not listening. And that's when you have to
And that's why again, the better teams they win because
they don't beat themselves.
Speaker 4 (43:25):
And I gotta ask you this before we get to
your list. Crazy story that uh it's gonna end up
going to trial, I guess. But a Miami Heat security
guard stole like three four hundred game worn jerseys out
(43:46):
of out of the locker room, sold them to online
brokers for a total of two million dollars over a
three year period, and he got Caddy got busted. By
the way, he's a retired police officer, which is just
he was a twenty five year retired veteran of the
Miami Police Department who ended up working for Miami Heat
(44:08):
Security and actually NBA security for a short time. He
sold one hundred of the things that he stole. They
think that he could have sold up to about four
hundred different things.
Speaker 3 (44:20):
Uh oh, yeah, they he.
Speaker 4 (44:23):
Sold one hundred items he had already. They seized another
three hundred stolen game warn jerseys and other valuable memorabilia
from his residence back in April. Were you Did you
ever encounter this in your years in the NBA where somebody,
you know, stuff started disappearing from the locker room.
Speaker 1 (44:43):
Yes, I have, Yes, I've seen it. Yes, I've seen it. Yes.
And the reason why is that usually at the equipment manager,
there's only like three or four people have that magical
key I call it the equipment room. And unfortunately that
just pressing me on the Heat had that one of
the had security had that key, and it's not one thing,
(45:04):
it's a lot of things. Remember Sewan, the players sometimes
get like fifty pairs of sneakers delivered by Adidas or
by Nike, a new balance times. You know, all these players,
and it goes into a into a secure room that
only had only people have a we'll say again, three
or four people have access to that room. Who's to
(45:26):
say that those people hopefully they're ethical, and you hope
they are, but this person was not. So it does happen, unfortunately,
and then it's so suddenly, it's so suddenly online or
in some auction house, and that's when it gets crazy.
Speaker 3 (45:40):
Yeah.
Speaker 4 (45:40):
This guy, by the way, not a great business man,
all right, because while unethical to say the least, he
also the best example in the article here, he sold
a game warn Lebron Jersey NBA Finals Jersey. He sold
it for about one hundred grand and that thing I
ended up selling for three point seven million dollars. So
(46:03):
he's not only is he a thief, he's kind of
a bad businessman. He's not even getting near the value
of these things. At least if you're gonna steal from
Lebron an NBA Finals game Warn Jersey.
Speaker 3 (46:16):
Don't unload it at a discount.
Speaker 4 (46:18):
Don't be fencing that thing to some rando for you know,
a fraction of what it's worth.
Speaker 1 (46:23):
I'm saddened by it because, again, it's in the NBA.
This is just so few people in the locker room.
It's only there's only fifteen players and the coaches and
the trainers being athletic trainers and some of the other personnel.
So truly a small group. And that's why it's so
disturbing that this person able to do that. But speaking
(46:44):
of disturbing, shown this is our last list of this
NBA season and it has a Utah jazz flavor and
has a flavor also shown leaning towards you. Yes, Gordia,
Joan O'Connell, Gordy.
Speaker 4 (46:59):
Knows what what kind of not NBA what kind of
basketball player I was in my very undecorated basketball career.
Speaker 1 (47:06):
Well, you told me this over the last year or so.
Is this list today is a top ten NBA leaders
in most technical fouls accumulated, most technical fouls accumulated. The
common traits are being physical, emotional, you're skilled, your competitive
(47:28):
all right, and you have longevity because it's based on
a Korea. Here we go. Number ten most technical fouls.
Kevin gone In played twenty one years in the NBA.
Hit one hundred and seventy two technical fouls. That's a
guy and he's in Hall of Fame. Number nine. Dwight
Howard played in the NBA for eighteen years. Hall of Famer,
(47:49):
one seventy eight technical fouls. Anthony Mason played in the
NBA for thirteen years, one hundred and ninety two technical fouls.
Speaker 3 (47:57):
It's a lot in thirteen years.
Speaker 1 (47:59):
Number seven. He's playing right now. He's a free agent.
You either either love him or dislike him. Russell Westbrook
has played in the NBA for seventeen years. Future Hall
of Famer has one hundred and ninety eight technical fouls.
Number six. He was born and raised in Germany. He
played for twenty one years for the Dallas Mavericks. He's
(48:19):
in the Hall of Fame. Dirk Nowitzki accumulated one hundred
and ninety nine technical fouls. Number five. Nickname was the
Worm played. He's played in the NBA for fourteen season
in the Hall of Fame. Dennis Shrobin accumulated two hundred
and twelve technical fouls. Number four nickname was the Glove.
Played in the NBA for seventeen season. Hall of Famer
(48:43):
Technical fouls A messed two hundred and fifty Number three.
This person is even interesting, even more so than a
lot of people. Rashard Rashid Wallas played in the NBA
for sixteen years, including an NBA record of the most
technical fouls ever in a single season in the two
(49:05):
thousand two thousand and one NBA season with Portland, where
he committed forty one technical fouls. It's the most ever
in the NBA. With the forty one added to it,
he accumulated three hundred and seventeen technical fouls, third all time.
Speaker 4 (49:23):
Is he the reason why they started to institute suspensions
and fines for an accumulation of technical.
Speaker 3 (49:29):
Fouls that is correct?
Speaker 4 (49:30):
The answer is yes, you change the rules of your
league by too many technical fouls.
Speaker 3 (49:37):
I love that.
Speaker 1 (49:38):
Number two all time, Charles Barkley played in the NBA
for sixteen season. Hall of Famer, had three hundred and
twenty nine technical fouls and number one. I coached this
guy for sixteen years. I saw most of these technical fouls.
Remember the criteria physical, emotional, skilled, competitive longevity, cal Malone
(50:01):
played for nineteen years. Hall of Famer call accumulated three
hundred and thirty two technical fouls after this, Jerry Sloan,
the Jazz Trusted Leader, my colleague, has the NBA record
for most ever also technical fouls as a head coach.
So I've been involved with both people as a player
(50:23):
and head coach technical fouls. Lastly, the last point about this,
Let's go the other side, showing the flip side of it,
the other extreme. Mike Conley has never been assessed a
game technical foul in his eighteen year old Korea through
the twenty four to twenty five seasons.
Speaker 3 (50:41):
Zero zero.
Speaker 1 (50:42):
That's one thousand, one seventy two games total minutes played,
thirty six thousand and five ninety seven. As Michael Conley
has never had a technical foul. That's the opposite of
the spectrum.
Speaker 3 (50:56):
Okay, what we need James? All right, you're the BA
around here.
Speaker 4 (51:00):
Not during the show, but as soon as the show
is over, when you put your boss hat back on.
We need to get Karl Malone and Mike Conley doing
some kind of podcast. It like a good guy bad
guy kind of thing. Good cop bad cop. You're talking
about a guy with none and the all time leader,
(51:20):
both of them who have played in a jazz uniform.
Speaker 3 (51:23):
That's unbelievable.
Speaker 4 (51:25):
That's playing that long without getting a single one is
far more rare and impressive than being the guy who
obviously had the most.
Speaker 1 (51:34):
And Mike cones he's a good player.
Speaker 4 (51:36):
Yeah, he's not a good It's not like you're some
dude who's been on the bench and you haven't been
on the floor and you haven't been elbowed and you
haven't been like the fact that he has never been
reactive in his NBA career to the point of being
assessed a technical foul. He must meditate a lot or something.
That is Banana's to me, because I'm sure we could
(51:58):
find situations where Mike Conley got fouled hard or guys
were talking trash man. That is insane Mike Conley, the
next time we talked to him, the discussion is going
to be all about that.
Speaker 3 (52:13):
Thank you for that factoid, Gordy so sew on.
Speaker 1 (52:15):
This list was a flavor Utah jazz, but it was
geared all towards towards someone like yourself of your physicality, emotionalism, skill, competitiveness,
and longevity.
Speaker 3 (52:29):
Three of those things. I don't have two of them.
Speaker 1 (52:31):
I do.
Speaker 4 (52:32):
No longevity in the basketball world for sure. Gordy, you're
the man.
Speaker 1 (52:38):
Thanks showing peace out
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